Date Night
by Nagarox1234
Summary: Mako invites Korra out to a nice date. It sounds simple enough but the night begins to take some serious twists and turns as they try to stick together.
1. Chapter 1

Special thanks to Writing4god4ever for being my Beta reader. You were awesome :)

Korra smoothed her ponytail nervously as she waited for Mako to arrive. She was sitting in a two-person booth of Nooraks noodle shack, a place she, Mako and Bolin used to hang out and have a quick snack after pro-bending matches. She was extremely nervous. She scoffed at herself, she had fought equalists and triad members and hadn't broke a sweat and yet it was a date that made her tremble?! That was ridiculous, she told herself, I need to toughen up.

"Hey, glad you could make it." She jumped slightly as Mako slide into the opposite side of the booth, wearing his usual outfit, though his hair was slicked back in an style that was unusual of him.

"What's with your hair?" She blushed at her own stupid question, what was she thinking?! He laughed, making her relax slightly and laugh along with him.

"Bolin tried to help me get ready. He's a sweet kid but he doesn't really know a lot about dating." Mako's laughter subsided and there was a brief but awkward silence between the two of them, which was broken quickly by Mako.

"So Korra, tell me a bit about yourself. What's your favorite food?" Korra considered for a moment before answering.

"I love blubbered seal jerky but I guess you've never had that, have you city boy?" She said teasingly, making him roll his eyes in mock annoyance.

"You're such a child. I love the flameo ramen. You know, the guys that sponsor pro-bending matches."

"Yeah I remember them. So city boy, tell me something about yourself. Like, umm, what's your favorite animal?" Mako put on a thoughtful face, he probably had never even seen a true wild animal before, Korra realized. It makes sense, he lived his whole life in the city, while she had lived in a more rural area where wild animals where common.

"Okay forget that." She muttered. "Oh, I know! When did you decide you wanted to be a pro-bending player?" His expression brightened, this was clearly a subject he enjoyed discussing.

"My father took me to my first match when I was six years old. When I saw the fire-bender on that team, I knew that was what I wanted to do. But after they died... I did what I had to do, my personal preferences had nothing to do with it, I just got lucky in my profession." His face momentarily lost its bright expression as he thougt about his deceased parents. He quickly shoved those thoughts aside, this was not the place.

"So Korra, when did you know you were a water bender?"

"When I was four, I used to watch my mom heal people with injuries. I tried to do the same thing and I created a tiny stream of water. Voila!" She threw up her arms.

"I was a water bender! So city boy, when did you learn to firebend?"

"Stop calling me city boy and I'll answer." He folded his arms across his chest in defiance, trying to look tough. Korra sighed in and raised her hands in a symbol of defeat.

"Fine. So, answer the question." He smiled widely in triumph and thought back to his first firebending experience.

"I, um, was pretending to bend with my toys and I set one on fire." He blushed and shy rubbed the back of his head. Korra exploded with laughter, clutching her sides as tears streamed down her face.

"That. Was. The. Best. Story. Ever!" She gasped as her streams of laughter slowed down. She finally reduced her roaring laughtertown to quiet giggles and then finally stopped, though she still had an enormous grin on her face.

"So Korra, how did you meet Naga?" He asked, desperate to change the subject.

"I was going on a hunting trip with my dad and I saw her in the snow, all by herself and I decided to keep her." She smiled fondly as she remembered finding her best friend in the snow. Mako loved it when she smiled, she looked so beautiful. Mako reached across the table and touched her hand lighlty, causing her to jump slightly. She hadn't expected him to do that.

"I really like this Korra. I like being with you." He said. Korra blinked, slightly unsure of how to respond to that. She was enjoying this too, she loved the opportunity to laugh with someone and feel appreciated and cared for by them. She liked Mako.

"I like this too Mako. This is fun." She smiled and tapped his hand back. He nodded and withdrew his hand.

"Do you wanna get our noodles to go? We can eat in the park, like a picnic. It's a nice night out anyway." Korra said. Mako stood and stepped out from the booth.

"Sure, that sounds nice." Korra walked up to the counter and began ordering several bowls of noodles to go from the man who ran orders. He stood by the door and held it open as she walked through, holding a bag full of their food.

"Think I'm too weak to handle myself, eh city boy?" He rolled his eyes in annoyance, making her laugh.

"I thought I said to stop calling me that." He murmured meekly, not wanting to start an argument when things where going so well. Korra smirked at him good-naturedly as they walked outside. The sun was just beginning to set, the sky streaked red and pink. They walked hand in hand to a nearby park that was sitting outside. They had no blanket so they simply plopped down on the soft grass to watch the sun set.

"This is beautiful." Korra sighed side, leaning against Mako. Mako relaxed and confidently draped his arm across Korra's shoulders contently. She leaned closer to him, relishing the loving contact with another human being. It was wonderful.

(Several hours later)

They left the park as the sun faded and the sky turned black. The streets were almost deserted, the occasional person appearing briefly before hurrying about of sight. It was slightly frightening to see the usually busy streets empty.

"Stay close to me Korra." Mako said quietly lightly holding Korra's arm. He would not allow her to be harmed by street rat. She rolled her eyes again.

"Do you honestly think anyone is going to attack us? They don't stand a chance against the Avatar! Not to mention the city's best fire bender!" Mako seemed to straighten a bit at that statement.

"The best huh? Well, I guess I'll find out." Said a voice out of the darkness.

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Mako and Korra both leaped at the sudden voice, Mako instinctively pushing Korra behind him protectively. A burly man stepped out from the shadows that covered the streets, standing in front of the couple. He immediately lit a small orange flame in the palm of his hand, allowing them a view of his sneering, unpleasant face.

"Well, looky here. A couple o' kids." He said in a slurred voice , looking at them with cruel yet unfocused yellow-brown eyes.

"Look, we don't want any trouble." Mako said, trying to keep his voice calm but even he couldn't hide the minor shaking in his voice and body. This was all too familiar to him, it was almost identical to the night his parents were murdered in front of him. He couldn't stand it if Korra was hurt by another fire bender.

"You don't want trouble eh? Well you've got some!" The man snarled, lighting to enormous fires in his hands. Mako cursed under his breath and began to back away, shocked when Korra stepped out from behind him, her fists clenched.

"I'm not running. If Drunky wants a fight, I'm happy to oblige!" She slammed a foot into the street, the pavement cracking and splitting beneath the mans feet. She lifted a sizable chunk from the road and hurled it at him, expecting the fight to end right there.

To her surprise, he managed to dodge her attack and launched a blast of fire her way. Mako stepped in the way, blocking the fire with his forearm before starting an attack of his own. He lifted a foot and kicked in the mans direction, a ball of fire roaring out.

"Damn kids!" The man roared as he countered the ball of his with a punch of his own. Korra slammed the ground with her fist, causing it to shake violently, making the man stumble and almost fall but retain his balance at the last second.

Mako gritted his teeth, this man was much stronger and coordinated than they thought!

He was putting up one hell of a fight.

Korra formed a whip of fire, slamming into the mans leg. He shouted in pain before returning fire with double as much ferocity as before. Mako launched a kick of fire at his head, getting extremely frustrated when the man dodged again.

Before either of them could react, the man was upon Korra and had slammed her into the ground, his hand digging into her shoulder. She shouted and attempted to shove him off but he was much larger and heavier than she was and kept her pinned against the pavement.

Mako rushed over and punched the man in the back of the head with all his might , satisfied as he heard a loud crack and the man groaning in pain. He forced the man off of Korra and punched him repeatedly in the stomach with a fist of fire, driving him away. Finally, with one final punch, the man collapsed briefly before standing up shakily and limping away. Mako despreatly wanted to go after him, hurt him horribly and painfully but now he needed to look after Korra.

"Korra?! Baby, Are you alright?!" He was frantic as he rushed to her side and wrestled the shirt off of her shoulders to check the damage. She was felt dizzy, weak and sick, too dazed to protest Mako's actions.

He felt sick himself as he glimpsed the wound. It was horribly deep and fiery red, almost shiny with blisters. Blood slowly leaked from the burn, staining Mako's hands and the street. The wounds were horrible but thankfully not fatal. He needed to get help for her but from where? He honestly didn't know where they were, let alone where a hospital was. That didn't matter, he'd find a hospital if it took all night.

He pulled Korra off the ground and into his arms as gently as he could, flinching when he heard her squeal in pain. He refused to let her die, he would not lose her. He began to walk, unsure of exactly where he was going, only that he needed to be out of there.

Korra was breathing shallowly in his arms, nearly unconscious but still able to feel the throbbing pain in her shoulder.

"Mako?" She murmmured.

"I'm here Korra." He soothed, kissing her forehead. "I'll never let you go."


	3. Chapter 3

Mako hobbled down the street, clutching the wounded Korra to his chest. He still didn't know where they were but he was hoping to find a sign, a familiar street, anything that would point them in the right direction. The sky was stillpitch black and criminals were probably lurking around every corner.

He needed to be fast but careful so as not to hurt her. Korra groaned as he began to run awkwardly, her injured shoulder rubbing uncomfortably against her shirt.

"I'm sorry." Mako murmured as he continued.

"It's okay city boy." Mako cracked a faint smile at the use of his nickname, she was still the Korra he knew and loved. She would be alright, she's a fighter after all.

He continued to search on, until at last he finally found a familiar house. A sanctuary after their night of horror, the perfect and safest place for Korra to rest and heal.

Her parents home.

He rushed to the door as fast as his aching legs would allow and began hammering loudly on their door with his fists. The door swung open to reveal a disgruntled and disheveled Tonraq, who glared at him with icy blue eyes. His anger dissolved to worry when he saw the injured Korra cradled in Mako's arms.

"What...?!" Tonraq began before stopping himself, an explanation could wait until later.. All he knew was his daughter was hurt and something needed to be done. He stepped aside, allowing Mako to rush inside in search of Korra's mother, he knew she would be able to heal Korra.

"Senna!" Tonraq called his wife to the kitchen as Mako gently laid Korra on the table, the first surface he could reach. Senna entered, her face first bore confusion, then worry as she saw Korra's burned shirt and the barely visible charred skin beneath it.

"Korra, sweetheart! Oh my spirits!" Her mother was nearly hysterical but was determind to remain calm and heal her daughter's wounds. She began to bend cold water from a nearby bowl and gently laid a hand coated in water on her daughter's burnt shoulder. Korra grimaced in pain at the contact, relaxing as the water glowed softly as the pain subsided.

"Korra, are you alright dear?" Senna gently stroked her light brown hair in a soothing gesture. Korra managed to smile weakly at her mother at an attempt to calm her worried mother.

"Yeah mom, I'll be fine." Her eyes fluttered briefly before closing, she was very tired after her ordeal. Senna smiled in relief and Tonraq walked over and briefly kissed her forehead. Mako stood hesitantly in the doorway, unsure of where to go or what to say. Tonraq looked at the boy and raised a hand, silently gesturing at Mako to follow him. Mako followed him outside and sat down in a chair across from Tonraq.

"What happened?" The question was delivered in a calm, curt manor.

"W-We were having a picnic in the park. When we were walking back, some guy jumped out and attacked us. We fought him off but he managed to burn Korra." Mako waited for Tonraq to give an answer, ask a question, just say something. What he said surprised Mako.

"You fought to protect her?"

"Y-Yes Sir!" Mako was flabbergasted. "Why wouldn't I? I love her!" He was almost shaking from his passionate outburst. He soon realized what he had done and mentally cringed and cursed himself for being disrespectful. Much to his surprise, Tonraq was not angry, in fact he almost seemed amused, with a hint of a smile on his lips.

"I had my doubts. But it seemed Korra made the right choice with you."

"Thank you sir." Mako smiled in relief. Perhaps the night would turn out alright after all.


End file.
